Telephone dial mask



Oct. 20, 1942. H. SIMON 2,299,257

TELEPHONE DIAL MASK Filed July 9, 1941 INV TOR Patented Oct. 20, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TELEPHONE DIAL MASK Harry Simon, New York, N. Y.

Application July 9, 1941, Serial No. 401,575

1 Claim.

This invention relates to telephones and deals more particularly with the dialing means on the instrument thereof.

The telephone subscribers records of the calls made during a period frequently are at variance with the number of dialed calls billed for by the telephone company for that period. This discrepancy is a frequent source of friction and annoyance both to the subscriber and the company, caused, perhaps, by the fact that the subscribers tally is usually much less than is shown on the bill.

Upon complaint, the company will place a check upon a telephone for a short period of, perhaps, five or six days to determine with what degree of accuracy the subscribers records are kept. The subscriber has no knowledge as to the period of the check which, if it shows any variance with the subscribers records, will be used to discredit such records. This places the entire onus upon the subscriber and instead of clearing the atmosphere tends to aggravate the irritation between the parties concerned.

The present invention seeks to remove the mentioned source of friction by compelling a mode of tallying the calls made which will be acceptable to both the subscriber and the company. For this purpose, it is contemplated to mask the dial of the instrument in such a manner as to prevent the dialing of a telephone number but permit the calling of the operator. By such an operation, the subscriber, when a number is desired, dials the operator, asks for the desired number, and is connected by the operator Who records the completed call. This record is employed for billing purposes. Thus, should a discrepancy show between the subscribers records and the number of calls billed, examination of the operators records will determine which is correct.

The above set-forth purposes of the invention are realized in the physical embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawing, which, while preferred, is intended as exemplary only. The following detailed specification, which has basis on the drawing, describes the invention in its present conceived form.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a face View of a telephone dial fitted with a mask in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a side view thereof as associated with 'a telephone instrument which is shown in fragmentary form.

Referring to the drawing in greater detail, the telephone instrument 5 is provided in the usual manner with a dial 6, a finger-stop 'l, and conventional indicia carrying means which comprises the ring 8 enclosing the indicia parts 9. The dial, in the conventional manner, is formed with spaced apertures It, one of which, designated I0", is the operator aperture and reveals such indicia at l l.

The ring 8, in its present form, is provided with means such as the prongs l2 which engage the dial 6 to hold said ring thereon.

The mask, as at present conceived, comprises a disc l3 of a diameter approximating that of the dial 6 and having a central opening M. The mask thus provided, is formed with a single aperture I5 located, as will be explained, to register with the aperture Ill of the dial 6. The mask is also formed with slots l6 arranged to receive the prongs I2 of the ring 8.

Made in the above manner, the mask is applied to the dial by first removing the ring 8, placing the mask upon the dial 6 with the apertures w and iii in register, and replacing the ring 8 by passing the prongs l2 thereof through the slots l6 and snapping them into engagement with the dial.

In the above manner, all of the dial apertures, except the aperture Ill are masked so that the dial may be employed only for calling the operator as contemplated by the invention.

If desired, the mask may be locked to the dial to prevent surreptitious removal. One manner of accomplishing this is to provide a seal comprising a wire I! which is arranged to pass through certain of the dial apertures I0 and through holes I8 formed in the mask and whose free ends are embedded in a sealing member l9. This locking means is particularly effective because of its flat condition which enables it to pass beneath the finger-stop 1 when the operator is being dialed.

It should be understood that the particular structural details may be varied, the essentials of the invention residing in a dial mask having a single aperture in register with the operator aperture of the dial and which is mounted to move with the dial.

I claim:

A new article of manufacture comprising a thin flat member adapted to be placed in masking position upon a telephone dial, said member having an outer periphery similar in size and shape to that of a telephone dial, having at least two slots adapted to be engaged by the prongs of the indicia member retaining ring of a telephone dial, and having a single aperture so related to said slots as to expose only the operator aperture of a e p one dial.

HARRY SIMON. 

